Summary Judgment

Question 1

MTD vs. Summary Judgment

Answer 1

MTD Failure to State a Claim:
- Court is focused on **whether Plaintiff has provided sufficiently plausible claims **to move forward
– Just pleadings befoe the judge
– No discovery yet

Summary Judgment:
- focuses instead on whether there is a dispute about evidence that would be presented at trial to prove those claims
– There is more info in front of court [discovery]
– Movant can submit affidavits, depos, interrog answers, admissions on file: and the court with.

Question 2

Motion for Summary Judgment or Partial Summary Judgment

Answer 2

• Party may move for summary judgment, identifying each claim/defense [or part of each claim/defense] on which summary judgment is sought.
• The court** shall grant summary judgment **if the movant shows that there is **no genuine dispute as to any material fact **and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law…
• [When Plaintiff files for SJ, they ask the court for a judgment in their favor.
• When Defendant files for SJ, they ask the court to dismiss the claim in their favor.
• If the judge denies a SJ motion, the case proceeds as usual.]

Question 3

Burden of Proof on SJ motion

Answer 3

-Plaintiff: must be able to **establish EVERY element **of claim + show if case went to trial, no reasonable jury could find for Defendant

-Defendant: must show Plaintiff does not have sufficient evidence after Discovery on just ONE ELEMENT/ establish affirmative defense.

-Court: reviews evidence in “light most favorable to non-moving party.”
– Cannot weigh credibility of conflicting stories if each side has evidence, so there must be no triable issues of fact for the movant to prevail on summary judgment.
– One way to defeat a SJ motion–> to show triable issues of fact that impact disposition.

Question 4

Time to File A Motion

Answer 4

• Unless a different time is set by local rule or the court orders otherwise, a **party may file **a motion for SJ at any time until 30 days AFTER the close of all discovery.
• [NOTE: SJ can come anytime before “close of discovery” and must come shortly thereafter.]

Question 5

Procedures

Answer 5

Supporting Factual Positions. Party asserting a fact cannot be or is genuinely disputed must support the assertion by:
- A. Citing to particular parts of materials in the record, [including depositions/documents/electronically stored info/affidavits/declaration/stipulations…(including those made for purposes of the motion only)] OR
- B. Showing that the materials cited do not establish the absence/prescence of a genuine dispute/that an adverse party cannot produce admissible evidence to support the fact.

Question 6

When Facts are Unavailable to the Nonmovant

Answer 6

If a nonmovant shows by affidavit/declaration [for specified reasons] it cannot present facts essential to justify its opposition, the court may:
1. Delay considering the motion/deny it
2. Allow time to obtain affidavit/declaration/take discovery; OR
3. Issue any other appropriate order
[This is all within judicial discretion]

Question 7

Who decides what is a genuine issue of material fact?

Answer 7

Usually, issues of facts –> fact finder [i.e. judge/jury] + issues of law –> Judge only
- At SJ–>** judge** does BOTH

Question 8

Means to Protect the Parties

Answer 8

• Court often permit oral argument on SJ motions
• Courts give the nonmoving party the benefit of acception its potential evidence as true at SJ stage; and
• Cts also give nonmoving party the benefir of all permissible inferences from the facts.